Connections
by TheDeep
Summary: A bold serial killer is picking off girls left and right, and the connections push the three CSI teams to collaborate to try and solve the mystery behind the strange murders of the girls. But this is unlike anything the teams have seen before, and when CSIs from the teams start going missing, time is of the essence to save them before they become victims of the killer!
1. Chapter 1: Serial Matters

**So… this is something a bit different, and I could only choose two, so my major focus shall be in Miami… but we'll just see where the muse takes this one, shall we?**

_Miami-DADE Police Dept. Crime Lab…_

"Have you heard anything on him?"

Two top of their field CSIs sat shoulder to shoulder looking past the interface in front of them to the large screen in the Miami Crime Lab. On the screen was a third CSI talking to them through a secure line, a video chat and an important one at that, from Las Vegas, Nevada.

A sigh was heard in the quiet room as one of the CSIs in the lab shook his head. "Nothing for the past three weeks, unless you want to hear our growing body count?" he offered.

The CSI beside him nodded in agreement. "Same style, and dumped just like the rest of them."

A moment of silence could be heard as loud as nails on a chalkboard as the three participating in the call remained silent. That was until the Las Vegas CSI broke the silence,

"How many new victims?"

"Five. In the past three weeks," the same CSI that had first suggested such a thing be discussed said.

The Las Vegas CSI visibly cringed. "How many have you identified?" he asked.

"All of them. All in Miami from either Vegas or New York. He alternates each kill."

"Calculated son of a bitch," the one of them grunted, crossing his left leg over his right as he leaned back with another sigh. This time his light leather jacket fell back just far enough to reveal a New York badge, the rank indicating the man as a detective with the department from up North.

The Las Vegas CSI sighed and nodded. "I can't believe none of us have anything," he said with a shake of his head.

"Detective Messer contacted me two nights ago; my team in New York has nothing more than we do here in Miami," the New York detective reported yet again.

And that left the third CSI seated beside the New York detective to end the discussion. "That means we all best get to work. We'll talk soon, Ray?" he asked.

The Vegas CSI nodded once more. "Good luck to you two and you keep yourselves safe over there," he said.

And the call ended, leaving the New York detective to look over at his red-head partner. "Your call, Horatio," he said. His voice was soft and evidently hinted at an underlying layer of frustration of some sort or another.

Horatio nodded. "Let's see Alexx, and we'll go from there."

The New York detective nodded and stretched after he was standing, feeling tension in his shoulders even after he was finished. His blue eyes lingered on the screen for a moment before looking out to the dark lab around them. "Is she still here, even?" Night shift would be starting soon, and he knew after being here with Horatio and his team for the time he had that Doctor Woods didn't work the night shift. Nor did he or Horatio, or the rest of the Miami CSI's team, for that matter.

Horatio nodded as he stood. "Yes. We should be able to catch her on her way out. I asked her to hold for us tonight." He looked with concern over at the blue eyed detective beside him, catching the hidden frustration not many could see through the barriers the former Marine had built. Horatio had to credit him there, though – he was a hard man to read, but a hell of a man to work with. "Are you alright, Mac?"

Blue eyes met Horatio's own as Mac looked over at him with a sigh. Mac shook his head. "This son of a bitch is a piece of work. The fact that we still have nothing after this long of a time period proves it. And he's only getting bolder."

Mac tossed his phone to the table they'd been seated in front of, shaking his head. "I'm getting tired of him."

Horatio took the phone off the table and pulled up the list of recent calls as one of Mac's hands came up and rubbed carefully at the back of his neck near the collar of his shirt before he held it there for a moment, and eventually he returned his hand to the depths of the pocket of his jacket.

Horatio squinted just a bit against the light from the phone, which shone in bright contrast to the dark setting around them. They'd left the lights off around them. It only added to the mysteriousness of the mood for both CSIs, although they were highly familiar with the eerie feeling that now haunted their every step with this case.

A series of calls caught Horatio's eye. All from a number the phone, and obviously Mac, didn't know at all since there was no ID displayed with them and just a number.

"Local area code," Horatio murmured, stating what both him and Mac already knew. He laid the phone down on the interface they'd been seated in front of just moments ago. Mac joined him and the two turned their attention to the large screen as Horatio delved deeper in to the recent calls list of Mac's mobile.

"Anyone on the other end?" Horatio asked as he wondered if they could even try to trace the number or put a watch on it. He had already banished the idea of putting eyes on Mac. He knew the New York detective would hate the idea.

"No," Mac said with a shake of his head, almost like he was a horse trying to throw off a pesky fly that still hadn't learned its lesson. "Nothing, ever. Reminds me of the damn stalker I had a few years back; Bedford, Drew Bedford," he added.

But the times were inconsistent and random. Nothing like Bedford had done. And Bedford had herded Mac back to Chicago, Illinois, where the former Marine and now senior NYPD detective had been born and raised. He had already eliminated Bedford from his mental list of possible suspects.

Horatio had nodded as Mac thought through all of this. Several moments of silence between the two CSIs seemed to stretch hours. Horatio finally pulled the phone from the interface and handed it back to Mac, stepping back from the table and interface. "Let's see Alex, and I'll talk to Eric about this tomorrow. Maybe the two of you can come up with something."

Mac nodded and returned the phone to the inside pocket of his jacket. "Yeah, I'm drained for the day," he murmured.

Horatio nodded and watched Mac in concern for a few moments before he nodded again, more to himself than anyone else that could've seen him. He then led the way out of the A/V Lab and started for the morgue, where they could meet Miami Medical Examiner, Alexx Woods.

The two had matched each other step for step the entire way down to the morgue when they stepped inside to find Alexx standing, obviously waiting for them, in front of the body of their most recent victim. The V-shaped incision from her autopsy had already been stitched shut once more, but Horatio had asked her to pull the body for the talk he intended to have between himself, Mac and Alexx.

"I was starting to wonder if you two would show up," she said with a soft smile, a lightly teasing tone to her voice that lifted Mac's spirits almost instantly. He stood by Horatio as the three stood beside the body, laid out on one of the metal tables in the morgue.

"How'd it go?" Alexx asked after the three had exchanged minor greetings after not seeing each other on a non-stop work day.

Horatio sighed. "Nothing new in Vegas, according to Langston," he said.

Alexx nodded and looked at Mac, who was already shaking his head. "Danny called me two nights ago for a report and he said they've got nothing new up North either," he said.

Alexx nodded again. "And, unfortunately, I've got nothing new for any of you. I've done what I can with these poor girls, and what I can to tell you is what you already know."

Mac nodded and looked past Alexx to the body lying behind her on the table. The specific victim lying on the table was a blonde with dark green eyes, emerald green even. Her name was Diana Young, ironically enough. "They're all too young," he murmured.

Horatio nodded. "We're going to find him, Mac," he said. Mac looked back to him and nodded.

"Well, I'm heading back to my place for the night and I'll see you tomorrow, Horatio," he said. Horatio nodded and Mac looked to Alexx before him and the medical examiner shook hands.

"You get some rest, sugar. You're going to need it," Alexx said kindly.

That coaxed a smile from Mac. "Will do, Alexx," he said. Horatio then watched with Alexx as the New York detective then turned and headed out of the morgue, leaving Horatio and Alexx alone.

Seeing a bit of a worried expression paired with a frown on Horatio's face, Alexx offered her words, "You will find him, all of you. I have faith in all of you, Horatio. All you gotta do is stay strong."

Horatio smiled a bit and looked back to Alexx. "I knew we could count on you, Alexx. I'll see you tomorrow."

Alexx smiled and nodded. "That you will, Horatio."

**~ CSI: Miami ~**

**A/N: And if any of you are wondering, yes, I have all good intentions to work on another chapter of "Experience" and, if I'm lucky, another one for "9/11 is 911" will also show up sometime rather soon. This idea just hit me tonight and it might be a bit before I have a second chapter posted.**

**So, in advance, my apologies to all of you. **** I hate leaving you hanging an' all, but you know my muse… temperamental as always. Thanks for reading guys! ;)**


	2. Chapter 2: We're Watching You

**For one reason or another, this chapter appeared before the other two I intended to work on first… that's probably my muse's doing… but anyways, thanks for the reads and reviews so far! I also want to note that the phone number I use here was one I randomly threw together, so any connections to any real number is coincidence and I didn't really look up any numbers for it. (Just seemed to all fit together when I typed it, so that's how it came to be… :p )**

**~ CSI: Miami ~**

"_Do you have a clean shot?"_

The man peered through the scope again, watching his target through the crosshairs, a wicked smile on his face. _"Yeah, I do."_

"_Good. Don't take it."_

"_What?"_ The command to not take the shot made the man look up from his scope for a moment, now looking at the named target without the magnification.

"_How many times do I have to tell all of you that we want him alive? If he's not alive, he's not worth shit to me! Or you, for that matter! And watch your tone while you're at it!"_

The man frowned and returned to his watching through the scope. _"Then what do you want me to do?"_

"_Watch. Watch closely. It's not too long before we make the final move, and that's when the real fun begins! I expect your friend there that you're watching to put up one hell of a fight. It'll be fun to see his fellow CSI's reaction to all of that."_ Even though it was just through a radio communication of some sort or another, it was obvious that there was a wicked grin on the face of the boss. The satisfaction at the plan working out so far was evident in his voice. It made it all that more exciting to watch as the target pulled out his phone with a frown.

**~ CSI: Miami ~**

Mac had just found the keys that would unlock the door of his place when his phone rang. He sighed and pulled out his phone, taking the time to look at Caller ID.

Problem was… was that there wasn't exactly what you'd call _Caller ID_…

What his phone told him instead was,

_Unknown Caller_

_555 – 763 – 5532_

Mac stared down the number. "Son of a bitch," he finally breathed, just realizing he'd been holding his breath. He finally selected "answer call" from the screen and raised the phone to his ear to listen for anything… anything on the other end.

What he heard was something he didn't like,

"_We're watching you."_

He looked over his shoulder, eyes narrowed. Looks like his call list for the night would include Horatio.

By the time he'd finished looking for anyone around him, not that he saw anything, the call had disconnected and his lock screen picture with the boxes for his unlock code greeted him once more. He sighed and shook his head. He'd give almost anything to put this case to rest and be back with the people in the picture that characterized his lock screen: his team. Family, really, if you wanted to be truly honest. Not by blood, not by law – although Danny, Lindsay and Lucy were technically family in that sense – and not by any one person's decision. They'd had all-time highs and all-time lows and they'd seen through it all together. That's exactly why he called his team "family."

He shook his head again and twisted the key in the lock, letting himself inside where he quickly shed his coat, badge, and holster with his gun right by the door. He wouldn't call it "messy," he'd prefer "easier to grab it all the next morning."

But none of that was important. That number was the same number that was in his recent calls list at least 15 other times. He didn't like it one bit, and so he called Horatio.

"_Mac… What's up?"_ That was the answer he got. For some reason, it made Mac sigh.

"_I just got another call,"_ Mac responded. _"And you're not going to like what was said any more than I already do."_

**~ CSI: Miami ~**

Bright and early next morning, Mac joined Eric and Horatio in the lab. And they were right back where Mac and Horatio had been seated just the night before.

"So this is the same number every time?" Eric asked as he held Mac's phone in his hand, frowning just slightly as he found the same number repeated on Mac's recent calls list.

Mac nodded. "Every time," he confirmed.

The phone was today's best of the best, so to speak. Yes, it was still technology and technology will never work all the time – at least, that was Mac's opinion, especially when it came to phones – and all three CSIs knew it wasn't that difficult to put a tracer on anyone's phone. Eric didn't care to note the exact model of phone Mac had been toting around, but he was guessing that it was some kind of smartphone. There was just some things that distinguished smartphones from dumb phones, if you get the drift. Every phone could do talk, text, data… the whole nine yards, but smartphones tended to be a bit more "classy," for the lack of a better word to describe the complicated features smartphones provided to their users.

Hell, Eric could check the weather at the New York Crime Lab right from where they were in the Miami Crime Lab with the phone he held in his hands as far as he was concerned.

But all of that was rather irrelevant to the major issue they were gathered to discuss.

"And you said it was just last night that someone was on the other end?" That would be a question from Horatio.

Mac nodded as he looked over at Horatio. "Yeah. Said something about, 'We're watching you.'"

"We're?" Horatio asked, brows furrowed and frowning.

"Exact words," Mac said with a sigh as he nodded.

Eric looked up at both of them. "I don't know about you… but that sounds like a threat."

Mac met Horatio's gaze evenly. "This is a lot bigger than just killing those girls," Mac said.

Horatio nodded, eyes narrowed a bit. "This is getting personal," he agreed.

Mac shrugged. "I wouldn't say personal, but for the lack of a better word, yeah. It's not about the girls anymore. This is about us – CSIs. Anyone on any of our teams could be next."

Eric looked at him in a bit of alarm. "What are you saying, Mac?"

"I'm saying that whoever we're dealing with wants to go after CSIs. Not just any CSI, but one on one of our three teams: Mine, yours, Langston's… They're playing with us," Mac said, looking at Eric.

Horatio nodded. "We need to let Ray know, and you need to alert your team as well," he said, looking over at Mac.

Mac nodded. "I'll call Stella and let her know right now," he said.

Horatio nodded. "I'll see if I can't get in touch with one of them in Vegas, if not Ray."

Mac nodded and stepped out of the lab to call Stella, leaving Eric to look over at Horatio. "What on Earth are we in to, H?"

Horatio sighed and shook his head, looking at Eric. "Something deep. And that's all any of us know right now. It's time we start watching our backs and finding out who's behind this. It's getting dangerous. For all of us."


	3. Chapter 3: Stay Safe

**Yeah, I did happen to leave out why Mac was in Miami in the first place, didn't I? Well, let me see if I can't fix that with this chapter!**

**~ CSI: NY/MIA ~**

"_Hey! I thought you were supposed to call last night?"_

He could never help himself with her. Her voice always made him smile. _"I was… but uh… something came up."_

There was a pause where Stella was quiet. _"Mac… are you ok? What happened?"_

Mac sighed, looking around as he stood outside the Miami Crime Lab. He was still very unused to seeing his black Chevy Avalanche surrounded by the large Hummers the Miami CSIs used. _"I got another call last night. And it was a threat. At least, that's what we're inclined to believe."_

"_What did they say?"_ Stella questioned. She was definitely concerned; it was in the tone of her voice.

"_We're being watched, Stella. It's not about killing the girls anymore. They want to go after us, the CSIs. I needed to warn all of you. We don't know what they're planning, but it's definitely not a tea party,"_ Mac replied. His last sentence lacked any humor. He didn't really have the time, or energy for that matter, for something like that.

Stella sighed on the other end. _"You need to be careful too, Mac. We need you. It's been ages since you've been here, it seems. It's not the same working without you up here."_

Now it was Mac's turn to sigh. _"I know, Stella, I know. Trust me, I'll try to be back in New York as soon as we close this case, but we needed someone down here from New York and I had Danny and the others swamped on other cases."_

"_I know, Mac. It's just…"_ Stella started, but broke off with a sigh, _"I miss you, Mac Taylor. Come home to us. As soon as you can."_

Mac only managed a very small smile and he sighed. _"I miss you too, Stella. And I will. As soon as this case is closed, I'll be on the first flight back to JFK out of Miami International. You can bet on it, Stell."_

"_I'll keep an eye out for you then. And we'll keep in touch as much as possible, deal?"_

Now Mac smiled more. _"Deal. I love you, Stella."_

He could've sworn he heard the smile in her voice as she replied, _"I love you too, Mac."_

And then they both hung up. He sighed softly, putting his phone away and staring out in to the parking lot in front of the lab, eyes falling once again on the Avalanche parked between two of the Miami lab's Hummers. He found himself lightly playing with the silver engagement ring on his finger. Damn it, he missed her.

Horatio joined him momentarily, and quietly.

"How'd it go with Stella?" he asked.

Mac took a deep breath to refocus himself as he looked over at Horatio. "I miss her like crazy, Horatio, but she said they'll keep an eye out for our guys – whoever they are."

Horatio nodded. "I'm really sorry we had to take you out of New York for so long like this," he said.

Mac was already shaking his head by the time Horatio finished his sentence. "It's the job, Horatio. I came down here to help you guys find a killer, or killers as it seems now. A serial killer and his team that has obviously added 'stalker' to their list of professions." He sighed and looked back out in the direction of the city beyond the parking lot. "Not solving this case is _not_ an option."

Horatio looked over at Mac. He really had to give credit to the New York detective. Taylor really had no end to the determination he showed on this case. Many lesser detectives would've thrown in the towel by now, and Mac's knowledge from New York and his determination had showed to be a bit of an asset to this case still being opened. "I know it's not," he finally said. Mac looked back over at him and Horatio offered a small, reassuring smile. "We're going to find the people responsible, Mac. It's the job."

That coaxed a very small smile from Mac. "Did you get ahold of Langston?"

"No, but I reached Catherine and told her what was going on," Horatio responded.

Mac nodded. For a moment, there was silence between the two CSIs. "Where do we go from here, Horatio?"

"Back to the evidence. And I sent Ryan and Natalia out to the area around your place. Hopefully they might find something that gives us an idea as to what's going on," Horatio responded.

Mac nodded. "Then let's get to it. We're wasting time," he said.

Horatio smiled a bit. "Agreed. Calleigh's in the lab waiting for you."

Mac nodded and gave Horatio a quick pat on the back as he turned and headed up the stairs back in to the lab, leaving Horatio on the standing facing the parking lot. They had to solve this case. Taylor was right.

Not solving this case was _not_ an option for any of the CSI teams.

**~ CSI: NY/MIA ~**

**Ok, so I apologize for this one being a lot shorter than the others, but this seemed like a good spot to leave off. I promise I'll try to have the next chapter soon-ish.**

**Thanks for all the reads and reviews guys! I hope you're all enjoying this so far!**


	4. Chapter 4: Pleasure Working With You

**I believe an apology is in order for this not being updated in ages upon ages, so I'm sorry guys! I'm finally back to it though, so I hope you guys are still with me? If not… Well, I can't say that I blame you, but enjoy!**

**~ CSI: NY/MIA ~**

Safety glasses on with a pair of latex gloves, Mac looked over at Calleigh at the computer to make a routine check before test firing. The blonde flashed a smile and gave him a nod.

"Three shots," Mac told her as he picked up the gun and took a moment to aim down towards the target at the end of the firing range before he fired off three shots in a simple and quick succession.

He set the gun back down carefully before Calleigh joined him for the walk to the end of the range to retrieve the bullets.

"How's your team doing, Mac?" she asked as they walked.

"They're keeping their eyes open," Mac told her as he slipped off the safety glasses he'd been wearing and placed them safely in the pocket of the lab coat he was wearing.

Calleigh nodded and carefully pried the three bullets out of the target. "Very nice shots," she commented, smiling.

Mac smiled a little. "Can't get too rusty, can I?"

Calleigh shot him a playful look and nodded. "Wouldn't want that."

They had just started to actually work with the bullets when Eric ran in. "Calleigh! Mac!"

The two CSIs looked up, a little startled by the urgency of Eric's tone. "Eric, what's wrong?" Calleigh asked, stepping around the table to quickly walk over to him, looking concerned. Mac followed only seconds later.

"H just got a call from Langston. He says Catherine's missing."

Mac and Calleigh stared at him in shock. It took a few minutes for even Mac to get his mind working to process that, "Missing?"

Eric nodded. "No sign of her since early last night."

Calleigh looked worried as she looked between both men. "What's this mean? Is this our killer and his team?"

"I'm afraid so," Mac said, looking back at both of them with troubled blue eyes. "I knew it was only a matter of time before they made their move. This case just took top priority."

**ooOOoo**

"Do they know what happened?" Mac asked, standing with Horatio in Horatio's office.

Horatio shook his head. "No. They've got no trace of her and they couldn't track her phone."

"Damn it," Mac breathed, worry flashing in his eyes as he looked out the floor to ceiling glass windows. He was silent for a moment and Horatio sensed that there was something that was being unsaid. So he waited.

"This isn't going to be an isolated incident, is it, Horatio?" Mac finally asked, forcing himself to look over at Horatio.

Horatio nodded in confirmation. "No, that means we've gotta prepare ourselves. Something tells me they're heading here next."

"Any of them could be at risk, Horatio. Even you. How the hell do we tell them to prepare for something like that?" Mac asked, frowning. He felt worked up and something in his gut was sending his nerves into flames as he shifted his weight on his feet in an almost nervous fashion.

Horatio visibly grimaced and frowned. "We just have to tell them the truth, Mac. No sense in sugar-coating it. They're capable people, Mac. And plus, I don't think we're the only ones to be worried about," he said quietly, looking over at Mac.

Mac looked over at him, not missing the look. "I know, but I don't exactly have the habit of worrying about myself, Lieutenant. It would save them time, and I'd bet they're going to do it so you shouldn't worry so much about my fate. It's your own CSIs you should be worrying about. We don't know which one they'll take. And I'd like to know before it happens."

Horatio sighed, shaking his head. "Mac… Please," he said.

"What?" Mac asked, looking over at him.

Horatio looked back up at him. "I think you need to take a step back for a moment, lay low. Figure your things out, Mac. This isn't you."

Mac sighed and took a deep breath, closing his eyes and nodding. "Point made, but I'm not walking out of this investigation. I'd say the same thing if you held your gun to my head right here, right now, Horatio. Please… Let's just figure this out."

Horatio's gaze remained concerned as he looked over the New York detective a few moments longer. "I'm not here to push you," he said finally. "So that'll be that. We'll find them, Mac, and we'll find Catherine."

Mac nodded, calling on determination to not fail him now. "We're the best in the business, are we not?"

Horatio smiled a little. That sounded a little more like the Mac Taylor he was a bit familiar working with. "Yes we are. So let's do what we do best and find them."

Mac smiled a little. "You got it, Horatio. I'll be with Ryan going over what we know."

**ooOOoo**

Mac worked with Ryan in to the early hours of the night, and the darkness had long since settled over the lab by the time both of them pulled off their gloves and stepped back.

"There just seems like there's something we're missing," Ryan said, chewing slightly at his lip.

Mac sighed and nodded, rubbing at his tired eyes. "The problem is… what is it?"

Ryan nodded in agreement. He looked back over at Mac. "What do you say we call it a night? We can look over it more with the others in the morning."

Mac nodded, rubbing at the back of his neck. "Sounds good."

They quickly cleaned up from their work before they both headed for the parking lot, leaving the quiet lab behind them.

"Mac… Can I ask you something?"

Mac stopped and looked over at Ryan. "Sure. What's on your mind?"

Ryan took a deep breath of the Miami air as they stood in the middle of the parking lot. "Have you ever questioned whether you're actually going to solve a case?"

Mac studied the young CSI for a moment before nodding. "More times than I care to count," he said. Something about the way he asked told Mac that he wanted to say more, so he kept quiet after his reply to let the man speak.

"Is this one of them?" Ryan asked, looking over at him.

Mac nodded again. "Definitely."

Ryan sighed and shook his head, clearly troubled. "I just don't know if we can catch these guys, Detective. I mean… Look at where we are. We don't even have a remote idea as to who these guys are."

Mac sighed softly and studied Ryan further as a gentle breeze greeted both of them soothingly. He finally nodded, looking around them. "We can't afford to think like that," he finally said.

Ryan looked over at him curiously, so Mac continued, "If we do hope to catch them and find Catherine before she ends up like our other victims, then we gotta keep thinking like this is any other case. A case we can solve."

Ryan nodded, letting that sink in as they both watched a set of headlights approach, signaling that there was a vehicle about to pass by on the road.

Ryan was about to speak when several bullets interrupted him, one barely missing his shoulder by the way he felt the air off the projectile.

Both CSIs went instinctively to the ground before pulling their guns from their holsters and looking around quickly for cover.

A few more bullets got them running and they both took to the back of Ryan's Hummer.

"They're here early," Mac commented as they pressed their backs against the tailgate of the Hummer, hearing a few shots ricochet off the front of the vehicle.

Ryan nodded in agreement. "Nice to know that they want to invite us to their party, huh?" he asked.

Adrenaline was getting the best of both of them anyways, so it only made sense to try and lighten the mood. They heard the vehicle they'd seen move closer and both of them locked eyes with each other.

"It was a pleasure working with you," Ryan said, taking one hand off his gun and holding it out to Mac.

Mac nodded. "The pleasure was mine," he said, taking Ryan's hand before the two gave a firm and quick handshake and then stepped out to meet the headlights of the vehicle as it came towards them.

In an unspoken agreement, they both shot at the vehicle as it came closer. They weren't going down without a fight, no way, no how.


	5. Chapter 5: Missing CSIs

**You guys **_**are**_** still with me! Thanks so much! I honestly wouldn't have blamed you if you didn't realize I came back to this story, albeit rather late, but I guess it's new year, I **_**must**_** finish! XD Joking, joking… But I did know I wanted to work on this again. Sometimes all I need is a little time and a bit of inspiration. XD Thanks a bunch guys and I didn't want to keep you waiting too long, so I typed this one up as well for you guys. ;) Hope you like!**

**~ CSI: NY/MIA ~**

Mac lowered his gun enough to signal to Ryan they had to move _now!_ They'd waited 'till the last possible moment before lunging out of the way of the speeding vehicle.

Mac hit the pavement hard, feeling the burn in the side of his arm from where a bullet had grazed him. He quickly rolled on to his back, his hand finding his gun as fast as he could from when he'd dropped it.

The vehicle had come to a screeching stop quickly and Mac's gaze found Ryan as the CSI got back to his feet as two men from the vehicle, presumably, quickly advanced on him.

"RYAN!" Mac yelled a warning a little late as he watched one of the men land a punch across Ryan's face.

The other man turned the aim of his gun to Mac and Mac struggled to calculate if trying to warn Ryan had any potential from the start of improving their chances in this situation.

Ryan shook his head, looking a little disoriented and wiped away a smudge of blood from the nose bleed he'd gotten. The man standing over him grabbed him by his arm, keeping his gun on him at the same time.

The other man jerked his head in the direction of the vehicle as Mac stood wearily, leaving his gun on the pavement. Trying to take a shot now wouldn't do any good from the looks of it. "In the car," was the snapped command and Mac looked over at Ryan before he reluctantly gave in and followed the order, feeling the aim of the man's gun on him the entire time until they were at the doors of the vehicle.

A few moments later and Ryan and Mac were in the back of the vehicle, their hands tied and blindfolds over their eyes.

"That went well," Ryan commented. Mac only knew it was him from how close his voice sounded and how he'd felt Ryan's arm against his own as they sat there.

"Better than I expected, to be honest," Mac admitted, shaking his head in an attempt to stay oriented. The light jarring of the vehicle as they were cruising down the road combined with the blindfold over his eyes made him feel slightly disoriented.

"Mac… are you bleeding?" Ryan asked after a moment.

Mac suddenly was aware of his grazed arm again. He guessed the adrenaline had ruled out the quiet yet insistent burn. "I got grazed. It's nothing," he said quietly.

"Shut up before I kill both of you!" They both fell silent at the threatening tone. "This isn't your discussion or show anymore, boys! You'd do best to remember that."

Mac sighed softly, shaking his head before he rested it against the side of the vehicle blindly.

Ryan shifted beside him, presumably trying to get comfortable for the ride to God only knew where they were being taken. What troubled them both was what the plans were for when they got there.

**~ CSI: Miami ~**

The scene at the Crime Lab that Horatio walked in to the next morning was anything but the usual routine morning.

"Frank," Horatio said, troubled by the scene in front of him. Ryan's Hummer sat silently beside Mac's Avalanche in the parking lot, now almost entirely encompassed by yellow police tape, "What's going on?"

"A few of the people that were on last night heard shots fired out here and the word is that Detective Taylor and Ryan were working late," Frank reported. "It's not looking too good, Horatio."

The lieutenant nodded with a frown forming quickly on his face as he heard this. "So it seems" he said, ducking under the yellow tape as Eric walked towards him with Calleigh. Each CSI toted a gun, which they were holding carefully in gloved hands by the trigger guards.

"H," Eric greeted, "We've got some bad news."

"We found Mac's and Ryan's guns here, both with spent rounds. It looks like they emptied their clips in to someone," Calleigh said, eyes worried as she carefully laid a finger along the barrel of Mac's .40 caliber service weapon to tilt the weapon so she could view its side.

"Or something," Horatio said, eyes focused past his CSIs to the set of treads left from a large vehicle. "Did you get a chance to measure those treads?"

Eric nodded. "Yes, and I also determined they're not acceleration marks, but rather breaking marks, and the breaking was fast. Had to be to leave those treads."

Calleigh took a look around the scene as the gentle breeze played gently at her hair and sent the tape fluttering slightly. "We're thinking someone originally tried to shoot at them and then took that vehicle at them."

Horatio nodded. "And they returned fire," he concluded, looking at the two guns his CSIs had brought to him. He frowned, his concern for the now three total missing Crime Scene Investigators evident in his eyes.

Calleigh nodded. "Most definitely."

Eric nodded in agreement. "Measuring of the treads leads me to believe it was an SUV. A Cadillac Escalade, to be specific. Tread measurements of that model match what we have here."

Horatio nodded. "Anything else?"

"I managed to find a few decent rounds that didn't belong to Mac or Ryan and I want to work ballistics on them soon and hopefully find a match in the system to get us a gun and a name," Calleigh said.

Horatio nodded. "Let me know," he said, looking back to Eric and Calleigh. "In the meantime… I have a call to make," he said. It was clear he wasn't looking forward to making it.

Calleigh nodded and offered the lieutenant a small, reassuring smile. "We'll find them, Horatio. All of them."

Horatio returned the smile and nodded. "Then we best get to work."

**~ CSI: MIA/NY/LV ~**

A familiar setting in the A/V Lab. Horatio frowned slightly as he looked at the screen in the lab. This video call was slightly different – a three-way call instead of a two-way seeing as he had Detective Bonasera from New York, along with Langston from Vegas, on the line.

"Lieutenant," the first greeting was from Stella, looking just as concerned as Ray, "What's wrong? I got your email and it doesn't sound like things are all Florida sunshine like they should be?"

Horatio managed a partial smile. "No… They're not."

Ray leaned back as Horatio looked back to the screen. The look on the lieutenant's face said it all. "You're missing CSIs, aren't you, Horatio?"

Horatio visibly grimaced, gritting his teeth. "Mac and Ryan were taken last night from just outside the lab."

Stella was visibly shocked and Ray closed his eyes, holding a hand to his head as he frowned.

"The same guys?" Stella asked, pushing the question through her shock.

"We're under the impression of that, yes," Horatio said with a nod.

Ray finally opened his eyes, clearly ready to be involved in the discussion again. "Any sign of Catherine?" he asked.

Horatio shook his head. "There are no indications so far that she was with them when they took Mac and Ryan," he said.

"So… Where does that leave us?" Stella asked, leaning back.

"Calleigh and Eric are working on trying to get us a name right now," Horatio said calmly in an attempt to soothe the worried detective. He couldn't blame her though… She had plenty of reason to be concerned.

"I don't think we have much time for this to be discussed over. Our best chance is to look over the evidence we have and try to figure out if they left us any clues as to what they plan to do now," Ray pointed out.

Horatio and Stella were both nodding after he finished speaking. "We'll be in touch?" Horatio asked.

"Most definitely," Stella said with a nod.

Ray nodded as well. "Let us know, Horatio."

Horatio nodded. "Will do."

They then ended the discussion and Horatio took a deep breath as he looked out through the lab, setting his jaw.

The stakes could not be higher. They needed to find those missing CSIs. And they needed to find them fast.


End file.
